Well, I'm just glad that the crisis is over for now (actually, I did light a candle before the shrine, this morning, and despite what Rebecca says, it obviously didn't do any harm!).I also notice that while MiL was hoping that "certain person" would come back, you were taking some constructive action. I'm often annoyed to be always hearing about idle, brainless teens, often from folks who don't know any, when I can think of at least half a dozen who support/ prop up one or both parents in one way or another. Sometimes it's good advice ("Don't lend him any more money, mom. You know you'll never get it back!"), medication management (one lad I know always orders his mom's meds on the internet and picks them up for her, because she "forgets". She just discontinued the internet when he was gone for a few days, so that should be interesting!) or paying for more than their share as working teens living at home. My two youngest kids have been supporting their idle mother since they were in their late teens. I remember receiving a teen boy who professionally jumped a bike over rows of cars (back in the '70's) into a Phoenix ER with concussion. Mother said that this happened "pretty often", so they knew how to care for him, and dad said that he was a recovering alcoholic and it was only what his son did that kept him from going back on the bottle. :angry:
Good for you, Zoe, and all of the other sensible, kind hearted, hardworking teens out there, both on this forum and off!